Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Airbus' Beluga: Giant of the skies set to get even larger
cnn ^

Posted on 01/22/2015 8:41:56 AM PST by BenLurkin

The Beluga can carry the wings of an A340 airliner or a fuselage section for Airbus' newest wide-body aircraft, the A350.

But it's not large enough to transport many A380 super jumbo parts. Those need to travel by boat, barge and road.

With a diameter of 7.1 meters, the Beluga has an incredibly large cargo hold. Though its maximum payload of 47 tons is surpassed by only a handful of cargo aircraft, the hold makes it good for oversized but not particularly heavy cargo.

With a diameter of 7.1 meters, the Beluga has an incredibly large cargo hold. Though its maximum payload of 47 tons is surpassed by only a handful of cargo aircraft, the hold makes it good for oversized but not particularly heavy cargo.

With the A300 now out of service, the new Belugas will be based on the Airbus A330 and be bigger than the existing fleet. While the current planes can only carry one wing for the new A350 at a time, the new jet will be able to take on board both on the same flight.

(Excerpt) Read more at edition.cnn.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy
KEYWORDS:
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-22 next last

1 posted on 01/22/2015 8:41:56 AM PST by BenLurkin
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: BenLurkin

Keep the thing away from thunderstorms.

Airbus has not exactly been scoring big in that arena.


2 posted on 01/22/2015 8:44:52 AM PST by Da Coyote
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BenLurkin

3 posted on 01/22/2015 8:53:55 AM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> ---)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BenLurkin

4 posted on 01/22/2015 8:54:42 AM PST by Bobalu (Programming is the art of adding bugs to an empty text file)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Bobalu

Great pics!


5 posted on 01/22/2015 8:56:47 AM PST by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either satire or opinion. Or both.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: BenLurkin

That thing would look cool with a skull face painted on the front.


6 posted on 01/22/2015 9:07:59 AM PST by Right Brother
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: BenLurkin

Not a new concept.
B-377SG Super Guppy Flew 1965
A modified Boeing Stratocruiser, which was a modified B-29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aero_Spacelines_Super_Guppy


7 posted on 01/22/2015 9:08:58 AM PST by Vinnie
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Right Brother

yes it wou!d or i am thinking a ‘predator’ mask or face

(even hang the dreadlocks off the sides)

Seriously, though, it looks a little top-heavy to me


8 posted on 01/22/2015 9:15:17 AM PST by Mr. K (Palin/Cruz 2016 (for 16 years of conservative bliss))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: BenLurkin
It's got nothing on the Boeing Dreamlifter....


9 posted on 01/22/2015 9:18:53 AM PST by hoagy62 ("Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered..."-Thomas Paine. 1776)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: hoagy62

I see a triple decker airliner in that airframes future.


10 posted on 01/22/2015 9:22:25 AM PST by moose07 (The Camels have reached the parking lot. Shields up!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: Vinnie
Not a new concept.

Airbus contracted with Aero Spacelines to buy the first two 377SGT Super Guppys and to have them build two more Super Guppys to use as part of their production-line process.

Eventually, all airplanes wear out, especially those used on a regular schedule. The Beluga was the replacement for their fleet of four Super Guppys.

The first was retired to British Aviation Heritage in Bruntingthorpe, England. Number two was retired to the Airbus final assembly plant in Toulouse, France. Number three is proudly parked in front of the main entrance of the DASA factory in Finkenwerder, Germany.

Number four, the 'youngest' of the 377SGT fleet, was acquired by NASA from the European Space Agency under an International Space Station barter agreement. ESA supplied the Guppy to offset the cost to NASA of carrying ESA experiment equipment to the station as part of two future Space Shuttle flights. It continues to soldier on carrying out-sized cargo for NASA.

See: All About Guppys

11 posted on 01/22/2015 9:23:33 AM PST by Ol' Dan Tucker (People should not be afraid of the government. Government should be afraid of the people)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: Right Brother
That thing would look cool with a skull face painted on the front.

Put Eric Holder's face on the front. His forehead would fit.

12 posted on 01/22/2015 9:39:45 AM PST by ImJustAnotherOkie
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: hoagy62

Those fly over my place on their approach to Paine - pretty impressive.


13 posted on 01/22/2015 9:41:21 AM PST by stormer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: BenLurkin
You'd think that rather than carrying the wings of an A340 airliner inside, they would figure out a way to just bolt those wings onto the fuselage of the aircraft as a sort of temporary biplane and simply fly them to their destination.

(Yes, I am kidding.)

14 posted on 01/22/2015 9:52:37 AM PST by Zeppo ("Happy Pony is on - and I'm NOT missing Happy Pony")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Right Brother

“It’s NOT a toomah!”


15 posted on 01/22/2015 9:53:25 AM PST by MrB (The difference between a Humanist and a Satanist - the latter admits whom he's working for)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: BenLurkin

Visions of I Dream of Jeannie when Jeannie didn’t want Maj. Nelson sailing on a big cement ship.


16 posted on 01/22/2015 10:17:52 AM PST by bgill (CDC site, "we still do not know exactly how people are infected with Ebola")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Right Brother
That thing would look cool with a skull face painted on the front.

Or an alien. It has the same shape as the "typical" alien face.

17 posted on 01/22/2015 10:26:36 AM PST by Disambiguator
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Zeppo

It’s not that bad of an idea.

The 747 has a wing hardpoint (inside of the inner port engine) for ferrying an engine.


18 posted on 01/22/2015 10:55:26 AM PST by tanknetter
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: ImJustAnotherOkie
All you had to do was ask:

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

19 posted on 01/22/2015 1:46:39 PM PST by WMarshal (Free citizen, never a subject or a civilian)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: WMarshal

Tiger Woods?


20 posted on 01/22/2015 2:40:47 PM PST by ImJustAnotherOkie
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-22 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson